The desirability of repairing or customizing golf clubs by removing a head of a golf club from a shaft of the golf club has been recognized for years, and various devices known as shaft removers or shaft pullers exist for this purpose.
Generally, a conventional shaft remover requires that the golf club shaft (most often graphite) be clamped securely in the apparatus. A threaded shaft contained within the apparatus moves a block bearing against the golf club head. The threaded shaft is rotated to apply a slight amount of axial force against the club head. Heat is applied to the club head until the user believes the epoxy bond, securing the golf club head to the shaft, has been broken. If the epoxy bond has broken, further rotation of the threaded shaft applies additional force against the head of the golf club to remove the head from the shaft. If the epoxy bond is not broken, the head will not be forced off of the shaft and more heat must be applied to the club head until the user estimates that the epoxy bond is broken. The threaded shaft is rotated once again, increasing the axial force bearing against the head, to remove the head from the shaft if the epoxy bond has broken.
This method suffers from critical disadvantages. The disadvantages result because the user must estimate the amount of heat to apply to the club head to break the epoxy bond. With conventional devices, the user does not know when the epoxy bond breaks. Intermittent breaks in heating, and a further application of force against the club head, are required to determine whether the epoxy bond has broken. The melting point of shaft epoxy is approximately 250-degrees and the melting point of the resin in a graphite shaft is approximately 350-degrees. If the user underestimates the degree of heat, the head will not separate from the shaft. If the user overestimates the degree of heat, unaware that the epoxy bond has broken, the user risks damaging the shaft by reaching the 350-degree melting point of the graphite shaft resin.
For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for a golf club shaft remover where, prior to heating, the user can knowingly apply a sufficient magnitude of force to the golf club head to detach the head from the shaft simultaneously with the breaking of the epoxy bond, without a further application of force once heating begins.